Teaching Shinigami
by jan 2.0
Summary: /May have slash/ A compilation of one-shots based in the Ripple Effect story line.
1. Safe Haven

**Teaching Shinigami**

NOTE: fixed some mistakes, my fault for writing all this after midnight.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own _Harry Potter_ or _Gundam Wing_.

**Warnings**: OOCness and Duo craziness.

**AN**: My first excerpt from _Ripple Effect_! These probably won't be in any specific order and can easily be read as separate one-shots but you may want to read _RE_ before these.

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**1: Safe Haven**

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Severus Snape was trying to take a count of ingredients in his store room. Trying and failing rather spectacularly. The reason for this was currently hiding inside said store room and rambling unintelligibly. Sighing Snape pinched the bridge of his nose, he could feel a massive headache coming on.

"Maxwell, why do you need to hide in _my_ store room again? In English please," he said, adding the last part when he saw Duo take a deep breath.

"Ah, that is…" Duo said, blushing. "I knda'… decapitated one of Sprout's favorite plants…"

Snape stared at him for a moment. "Again?" Duo's shoulders sagged and hr nodded pitifully. Both men jumped when they heard the terribly irate Herbology professor storming down the hallway toward the classroom.

"Tch."

Snape pushed Duo into the store room and closed the door. Barely a second passed before the classroom's door swung open with enough force to break the stop on the floor. Sighing, Snape turned to the door and raised an eyebrow.

"Can I help you Pomona?" he asked, walking over to his desk, setting down the incomplete inventory sheet. _'At this rate I'll be at this for the rest of the day,'_ he thought tiredly.

"Have you seen the Maxwell demon?" Sprout practically growled, scanning the room.

"What's he done this time?" Snape asked, watching the woman stalk around the classroom, checking under desks as she went. He wasn't too concerned; none of the professors ever went through his store room because of all the volatile ingredients. That and the door automatically locked once it was shut.

"He decapitated my Venus fly trap with those dreadful knives of his," she said angrily.

Snape raised an eyebrow, the boy hadn't been exaggerating. Sprout had breed and tended that one for years to see how it would grow when planted in such a magically rich environment. It had not disappointed her and had grown huge, though it had developed a bad habit of trying to eat any passing students. "I see,"

Sprout sighed, visibly losing steam and walking back to the classroom door waving a hand tiredly. "I know, I know. I'm partly to blame for letting it snap and try to eat students, but still… if you see him tell him we won't be doing any more practical lessons." After receiving his nod she shut the door, her boots clicking down the hall as she went back the way she had come.

Snape listened until he was sure she was out of ear shot. Scooping back up the inventory sheet, he marched back to the store room and unlocked and opened the door. Looking down at his refuge he raised an eyebrow. "Why do you always run here to hide?"

Duo stepped around Snape and into the classroom, he knew the man wanted to get back to what he was doing when Duo had run in begging for sanctuary. "Because you haven't turned me in yet?" he responded, hopping onto a desk and watching Snape resume his counting.

Snape snorted. "Well then, next time I'll just hand you over."

Duo pouted. "You're so mean, it's not _my_ fault all her plants try to eat me. I'm just defending myself."

Snape couldn't resist chuckling to himself at the boy's predicament. "You could try not killing everything that moves," he offered off-handedly, writing down some numbers.

Duo's ever present smile faltered and he looked away, his bangs falling and hiding his eyes. "…it's a bit hard to unlearn habits that have kept you alive," Duo muttered, toying with his braid.

Snape watched the boy with an unreadable expression. Dumbledore had told all the professors that Duo was actually one of the five Gundam pilots who had fought in the recent muggle war. The haunted look that often flashed in the boy's eyes reminded Snape how much he detested war, especially when child soldiers were involved. After another moment of watching Duo swing his legs and stare at his shoes Snape tossed his clipboard at him, Duo caught it easily with a questioning look.

"Make yourself useful and assist me with taking inventory," Snape said, turning back to the store room. He caught the grateful smile Duo shot him out the corner of his eye. Hopping down Duo bounced over.

"Okay Sevvy, what do I do?"

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**END**

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**AN**: Whoot, one-shot one down! I know this isn't that long but the idea struck me and I had to write this scene. A little insight into Duo and Snape's budding friendship!

No deadlines for this, I'll update randomly so just keep an eye out. :3


	2. Rooms

**Teaching Shinigami**

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**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Harry Potter_ or _Gundam Wing_.

**Warnings:** OOCness, AU, strong language (my Duo has a potty mouth), hints at slash because I'm writing it.

**AN:** And another one-shot/drabble. I actually started this one a while ago but stopped to work on RE, I mention this part in chapter 7.

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**2: Rooms**

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Duo shivered, wishing he hadn't left his uniform jacket in Dumbledore's office. He opened yet another door to find yet another empty classroom. "The fuck? How many classrooms does this damn castle need?!" After lunch he had decided to go and check out the castle himself, saying that it was easier for him to learn a layout by exploring. Dumbledore had given him a knowing smile and told him he would send someone to find him later for dinner.

"At this rate AB will have to send out a search party, I don't even know what floor I'm on!" Duo said, huffing and slamming the door shut. It was childish but it made him feel a bit better. It had been two hours since he had started and he was definitely lost. "I mean, what crazy architect built this place? They have moving staircases for god's sake! Why do they need _staircases_ in their _basement_?!"

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Meanwhile, Dumbledore was currently smiling at a very irate looking Snape in his office.

"Albus, are you sure you want _me_ to look for the brat? I'm sure Flitwick or Sprout would be happy to go scurrying around the castle looking for him." Snape said icily, still sore about his lost duel.

"Nonsense Severus, you know the dungeons best and our lost agent said he wanted to start there." Dumbledore said while he unstuck two lemon drops, the picture of innocence. Snape narrowed his eyes, he had known this man long enough to know he was plotting something but he couldn't argue with the man's logic.

"…As you wish," he conceded, turning and sweeping form the room, muttering about manipulative bosses and stupid children.

Dumbledore just chuckled as he watched the man stomp away. He certainly _could_ have sent someone else, but these two were already off to a bad start. He knew throwing them together wasn't going to fix anything, but it would be interesting to see what happened.

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Duo's slight shivers had finally progressed to full-fledged shaking and he had wrapped his arms around his chest. "It's July, why the fuck is it so cold down here?" he muttered, teeth chattering as he wandered down yet another identical stone corridor. "Would it of killed them to put some landmarks or something? Everything looks the same!" he huffed, eyeing another door that had appeared as he rounded the corner. "Let me guess, another classroom…" he muttered, approaching the door anyway hoping he might have found someone.

Sighing, he grabbed hold of the handle, prepared for another disappointment. What he got was a bit different. The minute his skin touched the knob a tingling sensation shot up his arm and he jerked away. It had almost felt like a static shock and he narrowed his eyes, examining the door intently. At first glance the door was identical to all the others he had already passed, but on closer inspection he noticed a silver snake etched into the handle.

He bent closer, wondering what the little symbol could mean. He jerked back when the snake actually _moved_, slithering around the knob before settling back down. "…you gotta' be kidding me…" he breathed, watching as the snake turned its head and eyed him warily. "You're alive?"

He wasn't sure what he was expecting but it wasn't the snake nodding its head to his question. His eyes widened. "You understand me?" Another nod had Duo crouching down so he was eye level with the door knob, childlike wonder on his face. "Are you the reason I can't open this door?" Duo asked, watching as the snake hesitated then nodded its head again. He wasn't sure how he knew he couldn't open the door, having not even tried, but he did.

Duo contemplated the snake. His guess was that this little guy was some type of magical lock that was probably made to only open for certain people. That meant that whatever was behind this door, he could be sure it wasn't another classroom. Duo hummed, his curiosity peeked.

"Let's see… this isn't a classroom… is it an office? Like AB's?" Duo asked aloud, not really expecting an answer. He was surprised when the snake once again nodded. "Ah, okay then, are you a teacher's office?" Another nod and he smiled excitedly, the snake almost looked amused as it continued to nod or shake its head as Duo tried to guess whose office it was protecting.

Duo pouted, trying to remember the names of all the professors he had just met hours ago. His mussing was interrupted as his stomach growled angrily, letting him know dinner was fast approaching. The ache in his legs told him he had been wandering around lost for a long time; he wasn't sure quite how long as his watch had exploded when they had entered Hogwarts proper. The following explanation that electronics didn't mix well with magic left Duo glad he hadn't packed his laptop or any of his other expensive gadgets.

"Argh," Duo muttered, standing and stretching out his aching legs. "You know snakey, this place is wa-ay too big, I'm so lost and it's freeing down here!" Duo jumped when a tapestry a couple yards down the hall was pushed aside revealing Snape who raised an eyebrow at him.

"Why are you talking to my office door Maxwell?" Snape asked striding over to Duo who was still staring at the tapestry.

"Man, am I glad to see you, and I wasn't talking to the door, I was talking to snakey here," Duo said, gesturing to the etching he had been talking to.

"…You were talking to my ward?" Snape asked incredulously, raising an eyebrow.

"Is that what he is? Yeah, I was trying to guess whose office this was but I guess I know now," Duo said, smiling over at the snake that nodded back at him bemusedly.

Snape stared at the snake etching; he'd never seen the ward interact with people before. He had been sure it couldn't. He watched as Duo tapped the snake on the head as if petting it. In response it slithered around the handle, stopping to stare at Duo. Snape narrowed his eyes. "Are you unweaving my ward with wandless magic?" he accused.

Duo tilted his head, still watching the snake. "I can do that? And no, I wasn't trying to though when I touch the knob I get this weird shock," Duo replied, shrugging his shoulders. He kept forgetting he even _had_ magic, it was all still a bit surreal to him.

Snape's glare lessened a bit, of course he wasn't, Duo hadn't even used magic in their duel, unless you count the accidental shock, which he didn't. Before Snape could demand the boy follow him he noticed he was shivering. Snape sighed and opened his office door, of course the idiot was cold, the dungeons had to be for all the potions and ingredients.

Duo blinked when the older man swept past him into the now open office. Before he could decide whether to follow or not Snape reemerged, tossing something at Duo's head. Catching it on reflex he realized it was a cloak.

"The Headmaster wouldn't be pleased if I let our guest catch a cold," Snape said in response to Duo's confused look.

"Oh, thanks…" Duo said, wrapping the coat around him. The hems dragged the ground a little and it was a bit big on his small frame. "Sorry, I should've grabbed my jacket but I didn't think it would be so cold down here."

Snape ignored the boy's thanks, relocked his door. "It's cold because all the potion ingredients are stored here, many of which need the cold and dark," he explained, turning back to Duo.

"So your classroom is down here too?" Duo asked, curiosity piqued. All the classrooms he had seen were obviously unused. They were all almost exactly the same, no indication of what subjects or teacher used the rooms, if one did at all.

Snape nodded and gestured to a door a little further down the hall past his office. Before he could ask Duo why the pilot had slipped past him and pulled the door open, sticking his head in to exam the rom.

"Now this is a real classroom," he said, stepping in and looking at all the tables. Each had little stands set up with a spot for someone to light a fire underneath it. Toward the front of the room was a large wooden desk and behind that a large blackboard, it was currently wiped clean but there were obvious signs of use.

Snape sighed and followed the boy in, watching as he wandered around the classroom. He even stopped to look at the jars set along the wall that made most students pale and quickly look away. Instead of being revolted, Duo leaned in and actually examined the contents. "Are these ingredients too?"

"Yes," Snape said and found himself explaining what each was as Duo asked, going down the line.

"Wow… I can't wait to try this potion making out now," he said excitedly, finally finished examining the classroom. He stepped back to Snape's side and looked up at the taller man. "Do I have to learn spells and stuff to do potions?" he asked curiously.

"No, potions don't require you have a wand. It's all about using precise procedures and exact amounts of ingredients," Snape explained, a bit surprised someone was so excited about potions. "It's similar to cooking but with more complicated and precise directions."

"Neat," Duo said, leading them back into the hallway. "So I guess Albus sent you to find me?"

"Yes," Snape replied, putting out the lights and closing the door. "He seemed worried you were lost."

Blushing Duo sighed. "I _am_ lost. I know most of the corridors I've taken I just don't know how to get back…"

Smirking Snape gestured for the boy to follow him. "I'll teach you a shortcut…"

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**END**

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**AN**: New addition to my drabble, I hope this holds you guys over till the next RE, which is about half done. R&R! :3


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